ERP Software Needs Analysis

The vendor is required to provide enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions needs analysis that can serve as the central business platform for core functions including finance, budget, purchasing management, payroll, employee experience and human resources, utility billing and customer service and other related areas.
- The analysis should also address implementation planning, data migration considerations, change management strategies, and the potential for integration with existing software systems or consolidation into a unified ERP solution.
- ERP environment includes the following key systems and tools:
1. Finance: 
•    Munis supports general ledger, accounts payable and receivable, payroll, and financial reporting. 
•    Financial statements and the annual comprehensive financial report (ACFR) are prepared using gravity software. 
•    Although Munis provides baseline financial tools, advanced reporting and analysis are handled externally. 
•    OnBase is utilized for accounts payable processing.
2. Budget: 
•    Munis includes a budgeting module, but forecasting, capital improvement planning (CIP), and multi-year financial modeling are performed manually or outside the system. 
•    the gravity software platform is used for preparing the annual budget book.
3. Purchasing management: 
•    Purchasing functions are managed within Munis; however, contract creation, processing, and lifecycle management are handled in agiloft, which is not integrated with the ERP. 
•    this dual-platform approach creates inefficiencies and data silos. 
•    vendor management is handled within Munis, including vendor setup and maintenance; 
•    the functionality is basic and lacks tools for more advanced or centralized vendor oversight.
4. Employee experience and human resources (HR): 
•    Munis serves as the town’s HRIS, covering position control, salary management, deductions, and accruals. 
•    Performance evaluations are managed in a separately created tool, which lacks full integration with Munis. 
•    Benefits administration is largely manual, increasing administrative overhead and risk of error. 
•    Activities related to recruitment and hiring are also handled outside the current ERP system in a standalone system.
5. Grants management: 
•    While Munis includes a grants module, the town currently supplements it with grant vantage for full lifecycle grant tracking, reporting, and compliance management.
6. Utility billing and customer service: 
•    The utility billing module in Munis serves over 20,000 water, sewer, and stormwater customers. 
•    Work order management is handled manually, resulting in delays and increased error rates. 
•    Essential service requests (e.g., move-ins and outs, rechecks, turn-offs) are also impacted due to the lack of real-time field-office integration.
7. Customer payment processing: 
•    Payment processing is handled through payment us, a third-party payment portal. 
•    Bill printing is outsourced to another vendor.
8. Point-of-sale (pos) systems: 
•    The town uses a variety of standalone systems for public-facing services, including the golf course, building permits, and parks and recreation programs. 
•    Integration of these systems into a new ERP platform is desired to provide unified financial oversight and reduce reconciliation burdens.
- The ERP needs analysis and future implementation planning:
•    Remote service delivery: enable business transactions to be completed online without requiring in-person interaction. 
•    Integrated reporting and analytics: improve access to real-time dashboards, reporting, and decision-support tools for all internal departments. 
•    Eliminate redundancy: remove duplicate data entry, eliminate shadow systems, and reduce manual workarounds. 
•    Process standardization: unify and streamline processes across finance, budget, HR, payroll, purchasing, contracts, vendor management, grants, and utility billing and customer service to enhance efficiency and reduce risk. 
•    Functional and technical focus areas: financial management 
•    Budget development and long-range planning 
•    Grant management and regulatory compliance
•    Employee experience and human resources (including performance management and benefits)
•    Payroll and time entry
•    Utility billing and customer service integration
•    Procurement and contract lifecycle management
•    Implementation and operational planning: phased implementation strategy and project timeline
•    Change management and knowledge transfer
•    System design and architecture
•    Data conversion and migration approach
•    Testing protocols and user acceptance criteria
•    Go-live planning, training, and post-implementation support
•    Integration with third-party platforms (pos, payment systems, field service)
•    Staffing plan and support model
•    Department-specific user accounts and access needs
- Potential deployment models of interest include:
•    Cloud-based or SaaS (software as a service)
•    Hosted or managed services models
•    Hybrid models
•    Traditional on-premises solutions (where applicable)
- Implementation services
•    Project management: coordination and oversight of all implementation activities to ensure milestones, timelines, and budgets are met. 
•    Business process redesign: evaluation and optimization of current workflows to align with industry best practices and system capabilities. 
•    Software configuration: setup and customization of the ERP software to meet the town’s specific functional requirements. 
•    Parallel operations: support for running existing systems concurrently with the new ERP until full Data migration and stabilization are achieved.
•    development services:
o    Enhancements and modifications (if applicable)
o    Integration development, including automated interfaces or scripts
o    Custom report creation, queries, dashboards, and form design
o    Support for both standard workflows and custom workflow configurations
o    Data conversion from legacy systems to the new ERP platform
o    Other industry-recognized best practice methodologies relevant to ERP implementation
•    Security configuration: establishment of robust access controls, user roles, and compliance settings.  
•    Testing: comprehensive system, integration, and user acceptance testing to validate functionality and performance. 
•    Organizational change management and communication: strategies to facilitate user adoption, manage resistance, and communicate effectively throughout the project lifecycle. 
•    Training: system administrator training to ensure internal support capabilities.
•    End-user training tailored to departmental needs. 
•    Documentation: preparation of detailed system, process, and training documentation. 
•    Knowledge transfer: structured hand off to town staff to ensure long-term operational independence. 
•    Deployment (roll-out) support: assistance during go-live phases to ensure a smooth transition. 
•    Post-implementation support: ongoing technical and functional support following deployment.

- Questions/Inquires Deadline: September 10, 2025